R v Cardona [2002] NSWSC 823

New South Wales Supreme Court

CITATION : R v Cardona [2002] NSWSC 823 FILE NUMBER(S) : SC 70059/00 HEARING DATE(S) : 05/02/02 JUDGMENT DATE : 11 September 2002

PARTIES : Regina Doris Marilyn Cardona JUDGMENT OF : Hidden J at 1

COUNSEL : Paul Byrne SC - Applicant P Ingram - Crown SOLICITORS : AR Walmsley & Co. - Applicant SE O'Connor - Crown CATCHWORDS : Criminal law: costs - application under Costs in Criminal Cases Act - whether it would have been reasonable for the prosecution to have instituted the proceedings. Costs in Criminal Cases Act, 1967 LEGISLATION CITED : Criminal Appeal Act 1912 Evidence Act 1995 R v Prasad (1979) 23 SASR 161 CASES CITED : R v Hatfield [2001] NSWSC 334 R v Dunne (SC, unreported, 17.5.90) DECISION : Certificate granted.

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES COMMON LAW DIVISION

HIDDEN J

Wednesday, 11 September, 2002

70059/2000 – REGINA –v- Doris Marilyn CARDONA

JUDGMENT (On application for costs) 1 HIS HONOUR: In June last year I presided over the trial of Ms Cardona for the murder of her former husband. At the end of the Crown case I gave the jury a direction in accordance with R v Prasad (1979) 23 SASR 161, and Ms Cardona was acquitted. She now seeks a certificate under s 2 of the Costs in Criminal Cases Act, 1967. 2 The terms of such a certificate are set out in s 3(1) of the Act: "3(1) A certificate granted under this Act shall specify that, in the opinion of the Court or Judge or Justice or Justices granting the certificate: (a) if the prosecution had, before the proceedings were instituted, been in possession of evidence of all the relevant facts, it would not have been reasonable to institute the proceedings; and